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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28847091">Three's Never a Crowd</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/inky_dreams/pseuds/inky_dreams'>inky_dreams</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>What is family? [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Batman - All Media Types, Batman: Under the Red Hood (2010), Red Hood: Lost Days</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bad Parent Ra's al Ghul, Doctor Jason Todd, Female Jason Todd, Gen, Good Parent Talia al Ghul, Not Beta Read, hints of Talia Al-Ghul/Slade Wilson</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 03:55:03</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,088</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28847091</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/inky_dreams/pseuds/inky_dreams</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>In which, Ra's Al-Ghul is a terrible parent and Talia ponders about her next steps. </p><p>OR sometimes your family is you, your son and your estranged ex's adopted daughter (her adopted father is coincidentally also the father of your son). And as time passes, maybe your family expands.</p><p> </p><p>This is an alternate scenario, which would take place after Chapter 4 of Family is What We Make of It.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Talia al Ghul &amp; Damian Wayne, Talia al Ghul &amp; Jason Todd</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>What is family? [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2115303</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>61</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Three's Never a Crowd</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Slight mentions of murder, but nothing graphic or descriptive</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>As the daughter of the Demon's Head, there came a reputation and a set of expectations. For years, Talia believed her path was to aid her father's cause. She remembered the day she had proved her worth by presenting proof of her first kill to the League. Pledging her strength and devotion to the cause. If you asked her years ago, whether she would ever betray her father, she would have laughed and then ended the person for daring to question her loyalty.</p><p>Now, that loyalty seemed to waver. Her father had barely allowed her to raise Damian, he believed that it would make her too sentimental, too soft for the League. They had argued and argued, yet Talia stayed firm in her resolve. Eventually her father yielded, but on the condition that Damian's training was organized by him. The tutors were harsh, small misdemeanours were punished harshly. It was ridiculous for her father to set unreasonable expectations for a toddler, all the tutors knew it too. Nobody refused The Demon's Head, so nothing changed. Her heart hurt seeing her son covered in bruises. He was too young.<em><strike> You started at the same age.</strike></em>  In a few years, he would be expected to present evidence of his first kill. The same age that Talia had. She couldn't bear to see her boy, who still cried when a pet died, kill. </p><p> </p><p>The girl had been an impulse decision. At first, she was just a means to regaining her Beloved. Damian had gotten easily attached when the girl appeared at the compound, dragging Medea around everywhere he went, often telling her about nonsensical things. At first, Talia had kept an eye out, worried that Robin would make a move. She had spies follow them around, brain dead or not, her son would be safe. The group was eventually disbanded, relocated to different missions. The girl had good enough reflexes and seemed to protect Damian from harm. In turn, Damian was the only one who could help <strike>the girl</strike> Medea with her nightmares. Those had been painful to watch. The path to healing was slow, with many setbacks. Talia was adamant to help the child, she couldn't help but get attached. </p><p>The pit had been a last ditch attempt. Her father had wanted to send Medea away, displeased with her progress. She had refused, adamant that Medea would heal. Another child would not be taken away from her again. While the pit had cured much, it also brought some unpleasant side effects. Talia tried her best to help Medea take control over the pit. Some days were worse than others. Progress was progress, no matter how slow. She was happy to see Damian and Medea maintain a close relationship. Her relationship too was strengthened, her charge eventually being comfortable enough to make quips in her presence and confiding to Talia her birth name. The introduction of Rose Wilson, the current Ravager, had been welcome. It was good for Medea to be around people her age. However, the antics that the 2 of them ended up in were amusing and slightly worrying. The 2 of them really were a magnet for trouble. How on earth, did the 2 of them manage to be banned from the carnival in town?</p><p> </p><p>For once in her life, Talia struggled to make a decision. To remain as the daughter of the The Demon's Head or to forge her own path. She never imagined such a decision. Glancing at the couch, she saw Damian and Medea fast asleep, oblivious to the her turmoil. She smiled and adjusted the blanket on top of them. </p><p>No, she was sure that this was the right decision. Tomorrow morning, she would draw up her plans. It was time for Talia to leave the shadow cast by her father, the daughter of The Demon's Head would no longer be a title she needed. For now, it was time to enjoy her time with her family. </p><hr/><p>TIMESKIP</p><p>Although Talia may have left her father's shadow behind, she was no fool to believe that nobody would seek her out for revenge. While she had ordered some of her agents to remain in the league to keep her informed, a majority of her agents had followed her departure. They were scattered across the globe, keeping her updated on everything. Whether it be the Justice League's actions, the League of Shadows' or anything in between. </p><p>Talia would keep her children safe, by any means necessary. Never again would she let another dictate how she raised her child. Damian and Medea deserved to have a life without worrying whether they lived up to some inane legacy. They should be worrying over school assignments, rather than planning and following out assassinations. Anyone that tried to harm her children would be in for a nasty surprise. </p><p>And if that meant hiring a bodyguard when they left for certain trips overseas, so be it. <em><strike>So what if it was Deathstroke?</strike> </em>Talia would never settle for second best, after all the man was the best in his field. And if the man brought along his daughter, it was only because Talia wanted her children to be well protected. You never know if they would split up. One bodyguard can hardly look after 3 people at the same time when they split up. It was just an added bonus that the children got along so well. </p><p>At first, Talia had been worried about her children adjusting to civilian life. How would they adjust, especially Damian? The League had been all that he had known. They ran into some hiccups, but Damian did adjust well. Talia made sure to nurture Damian's passion for art and his love of animals. This was not the League, where the hobbies would have been seen as frivolous and a weakness, she would not force Damian to abandon them. For Medea, the adjustment was easier. She had opted to remain close and live at home while completing her university studies. Medea would soon be finishing up her residency. She glanced down at the photo frame on her desk with a soft smile, she was proud of her children. They had been through so much at a young age, yet their smiles looked as joyful as ever.  Looking back, the decision she made that night in Nanda Parbat was the right one.</p><p> </p><p>"Ms. Head?"</p><p>"Yes?"</p><p>"Mr. Kent from The Daily Planet has arrived for the interview. He is waiting in the reception area."</p><p>"I see, please escort him in"</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Originally, I was going to make Ra's Al-Ghul a terrible person in Family is What We Make of It, but I couldn't figure out how to work it in. I ended up scrapping the idea, but I had already written parts of it. This is a little insight into Talia's perspective and what family is to her.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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